Tiger Woods Making Video Game Return With 2K Games Deal

Avid gamers will remember Woods as the annual cover athlete for ES Sports' golf game from 1998-2013 before Rory McIlroy took over for one year. Woods has not been seen in a video game since. EA has not developed a golf game since 2005.

In the deal announced Tuesday, 2K will be able to use Woods' image and likeness within any golf games the developer creates. PGA Tour 2K21 has sold nearly two million copies since its release in August, which features recently-crowned The Players champion Justin Thomas on the cover.

Woods is currently recovering at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles following multiple surgeries. He suffered injuries to the upper and lower portions of his tibia and fibula bones, along with injuries to the bones of the foot and ankle.

It's highly uncertain whether Woods will ever be able to return to competitive golf. McIlroy did say last week that Woods could soon be released from the hospital to continue his recovery at home in Florida.

"I've spoken to him a little bit," McIlroy told Jimmy Fallon on "The Tonight Show." "He's doing better. ... Hopefully if things go well over the next week or so, he might be able to get home and start recovery at home, which would be great for him. See his kids, see his family.
 

Woods has been texting several friends on the PGA Tour recently, but Tuesday's announcement was the first public statement he has made since the accident.

It has been 18 long years since Woods was seen in a video game, following a 15-year run working with EA Sports. The "Tiger Woods PGA Tour" series sold an estimated $771 million worth of games during its lifetime. EA was also one of the few companies to stick with Woods following his infamous cheating scandal in 2009.